In an ink jet recording device, soils such as unnecessary ink and debris attach to nozzles and areas around them, and a cleaning blade comprising an elastic body such as rubber for removing the soils is provided. A cleaning blade cleans nozzles of recording heads and areas around them by wiping these soils.
Generally, cleaning of recording heads by a cleaning blade is carried out by making the cleaning blade contact with the (front) surface of the recording heads, that is, the surface, which has nozzles, of recording heads (recording head surface) and sliding the cleaning blade with respect to the recording heads, when the recording heads are moved in accordance with the reciprocating (forward and backward) scanning of a carriage member having the recording heads. However, when the cleaning blade is moved reciprocatingly with respect to the recording heads and is made to contact with them and slide with respect to them, the soils such as unnecessary ink and debris pushed to one side when the cleaning blade is moved forward are pushed back to another side when the cleaning blade is moved backward, and the soils such as unnecessary ink and debris which are once removed attach to the nozzles again, so enough effects cannot be obtained.
Therefore, when cleaning, it is necessary to restrict the direction, in which the cleaning blade that contacts the recording heads is slided, to one direction. In conventional examples, by providing means for approaching a cleaning blade toward recording heads and keeping it away from the recording heads, the cleaning blade contacts with the recording heads only when required.
However, to make the cleaning blade approach the recording heads and keep it away from them, an individual motor or solenoid is necessary, which has increased the producing cost.
To avoid such an extra cost, for example, an ink jet recording device disclosed in Japanese examined patent publication Hei 4-77669 is structured so that a cleaning blade moves, only when a cap member advances, to a position at which cleaning of the surface, which has nozzles, of recording heads is possible, linking with the movement of the cap member and that the state wherein the cleaning blade is stopped at the position is unlocked by the movement, after cleaning the recording heads, of the carriage.
With the above described disclosed ink jet recording device, the cleaning blade can be moved away from the recording heads without using an individual motor or solenoid, but for making the cleaning blade approach the recording heads, an individual motor or solenoid is necessary.